The present invention relates to an automatic device for measuring the noise of electronic components and in particular in the low frequency range (0.01 Hz to 1 MHz). It more particularly applies to the detection of faults for the sorting of components, for establishing quality criteria, for aiding the statistical studies of quality problems and for analysing and correlating with models the detected noise sources.
Several measurement types are known, which make it possible to detect faults in electronic and, in particular, microelectronic components. One important measurement relates to the determination of the noise level produced by the components. In analog-type applications, e.g. in imaging, the performance characteristics of the components used are generally limited by the noise level. For example, in the low frequency range, components such as infrared radiation photovoltaic detectors having defects, produce an abnormally high noise level. Thus, giving an acceptable noise level threshold for a given frequency range defines a quality criterion making it possible to reject defective components. The determination of other characteristics, such as the intensity curve as a function of the voltage applied to the component can complete the noise measurement.
In a conventional manner, the components to be tested are successively connected to the characterization device, a connected component being tested, disconnected and then replaced by the following component. Therefore, there are numerous manipulations for each component, which makes it problematic to characterize a large number of such components. Thus, in the case of several determinations of characteristics for each component, the manipulations are multiplied and, consequently, the necessary sequence of operations is even more tedious.